In a historic raid, the Income Tax department seized hundreds of crores from premises linked to Congress Rajya Sabha MP Dhiraj Sahu. Now, the department has revealed that out of this seized Rs 351 crore, Rs 329 crore was recovered from dilapidated buildings in small towns of Odisha. The money was stashed in hidden chambers and hidden safe houses camouflaged as an unoccupied residence located in small towns of Odisha including Sudapada and Titlagarh in Bolangir district and Khetrajrajpur in Sambhalpur district, the I-T Department confirmed on Thursday, December 21.
Besides the cash, many incriminating pieces of evidence in the form of documents and digital data have been found and seized, the Income Tax Department said.
Income Tax Department conducts search operations in Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal
— PIB India (@PIB_India) December 21, 2023
During the search operation, a large number of incriminating evidence in the form of documents and digital data has been found & seized
Read here: https://t.co/wutORAk76a @FinMinIndia… pic.twitter.com/AMA2aU4bqd
In West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Odisha, the Income Tax Department carried out extensive search operations at properties connected to the Congress MP as well as at a liquor distillery. The operation, which began on December 6 and lasted for more than a week, encompassed more than thirty locations in ten districts throughout the three states.
More than 100 I-T officials were present during the raids and more than 40 machines were deployed to count the seized cash. This cash haul has been cited as the largest in the last 42 years.
The tax authorities said that after a preliminary examination of the evidence that was seized, they discovered references for the flow of unaccounted cash, systematic information on undisclosed cash receipts, and records of unreported sales of country liquor.
“The main employees looking after the business activities of the group, have admitted that the cash found and seized during the search operation represents the unaccounted income of the group, generated through its multiple business concerns. This was also corroborated by one of the family members who is actively involved in the business. The facts unearthed during the search operation indicate that the group has been indulging in huge suppression of income earned from the liquor business,” the statement read.
MP from Jharkhand, liquor empire working in several districts of Odisha
It may be mentioned here that the largest amount of cash was found from the liquor manufacturing units of Baldev Sahu and Sons, in Sudpada, Balangir, a town in Western Odisha. As of 10th December, the SBI branch in Balangir declared that all the 176 bags of cash brought from the premises of Baldev Sahu and Sons were counted. This counting took 5 days, and involved dozens of bank staff, and counting machines. Reports in Odisha have stated that the total amount of cash seized from Odisha is over 400 crores and nearly 60 kgs of gold.
2 more liquor traders, reportedly the relatives of Dhiraj Sahu, named Deepak Sahu and Sanjay Sahu, were raided in Titilagarh, a town in Balangir district. I-T seized 11 crores of cash from the premises of the Sahu brothers. Raids at the Sambalpur unit of the company found 37.5 crores.
The political implications of the case were hinted at by Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in Odisha. Without taking names, he stated that the money has been looted from the poor people from Odisha and Modi government will ensure that the powerful people linked with the ‘family business’ of the Congress leader (Dhiraj Sahu), will have to answer before the public of Odisha.
Who is Dhiraj Prasad Sahu?
Dhiraj Prasad Sahu is a Rajya Sabha MP for Congress from Jharkhand. His family has been associated with the Congress party since independence. He became RS MP in by-polls in 2009 for the first time. In 2010, he was elected as RS MP for the second time; in 2018, he was re-elected for RS by Congress for the third time. He actively participates in parliamentary proceedings. Sahu was part of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. In recent raids at Odisha-based Boudh Distillery Pvt Ltd, where Dhiraj Prasad Sahu is a partner, the Income Tax Department recovered over 300 cr of unaccounted cash. Congress Party has distanced itself from the controversy, while BJP leaders, including PM Modi, have targeted Congress.
